The goal of this program is to provide graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, faculty, and other health care professionals with formal education in the essential components of the science of cancer prevention. This training program will prepare professionals to integrate within interdisciplinary investigative teams for the conduct of cancer prevention research in culturally diverse settings.
The specific aims of the Certificate in Cancer Prevention Program are to:
- Support the intellectual environment at UT Health San Antonio for cancer prevention research.
- Provide fundamental curricular activities in the science of cancer prevention to UT Health San Antonio students, postdoctoral trainees, clinical residents and fellows, and faculty from the Schools of Medicine, Nursing, Dentistry, Health Professions, and Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences as well as from local organizations that are partnered with UT Health San Antonio.
The aims of the Certificate in Cancer Prevention Program will be achieved via participation and successful completion of required didactic coursework.
Student Pathways in the Certificate in Cancer Prevention Program
After acceptance as a candidate working towards the certificate, students may undertake course requirements for graduation while enrolled as either a full-time or part-time student.
Full-Time Students: Full-time students are enrolled in at least eight (8) semester credit hours during the Fall and Spring semesters.
Part-time Students: Part-time students are enrolled for less than eight (8) credit hours per semester during the Fall or Spring semesters. A part-time student must enroll in at least four (4) credit hours per semester.
UT Health San Antonio Faculty and Staff: UT Health San Antonio faculty and staff may apply for admission in the Certificate in Cancer Prevention Program. The amount of course work that can be taken by faculty or staff in a given semester is subject to the ‘quantity of work’ rules outlined in the Handbook of Operating Procedures.
Non-degree seeking students: Non-degree seeking students may enroll in courses and receive GSBS course credit without matriculation (admission) into a graduate program. For those not already matriculated into other GSBS graduate programs, an online application must be submitted to the GSBS for approval by the Dean [this would also include faculty, staff, or others]. The appropriate course director or the MSCI-TS Academic Program Coordinator must approve the enrollment of any non-Certificate in Cancer Prevention degree-seeking student in all MSCI-TS courses and sign course cards (provided by the GSBS Dean’s Office). Course credit earned as a non-degree seeking student can be applied towards a Certificate in Cancer Prevention following formal application and acceptance into the CCP Program.
Attendance
Attendance at scheduled classes and examinations is crucial to meeting course and program objectives. Therefore, regular attendance in class is expected of each student. Attendance is defined as being present within 15 minutes after the scheduled beginning of the class and until 15 minutes before the scheduled ending of the class.
Excused absences may be granted by the Course Director in cases such as formal presentations at scientific meetings, illness, or personal emergency. Excused absences are considered on an individual basis and require electronic communication with the Course Director to request an excused absence. The e-mail request to the Course Director for consideration of an excused absence must provide details regarding the circumstances and specific dates. It is expected that students will provide advanced noticeof absence for scheduled events.
Repeated unexcused absences make it impossible to achieve course objectives. Thus, if a student has excessive unexcused absences in a given course, they will automatically receive a grade of unsatisfactory unless makeup has been approved by the Course Director (see below). Allowable unexcused absences will be determined by the credit hours of the course as follows:
| Course Semester Credit Hours | Allowable Unexcused Absences |
| 3 | 3 |
| 2 | 2 |
| 1 | 1 |
Absence Makeup. Makeup of absences (both excused and unexcused) is allowed at the discretion of the Course Director.
Other CCP Program Requirements
Laptop Computers. The CCP Program requires each student to have a laptop computer that can connect to and operate over a wireless network. Software required:
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Microsoft Office Suite (can be purchased at the UT Health San Antonio bookstore with a student ID)
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R & R Studio (Open source, free, latest version) https://www.rstudio.com/products/RStudio/ https://www.r-project.org/
Laptops with an Apple Mac-based operating system must be able to also perform as a PC- based operating system.
All laptops will connect to UT Health San Antonio network via the HSCwave broadcast wireless connection. Authentication for wireless use is based on UT Health San Antonio domain username and password. Verification of proper operation prior to the start of class is highly recommended.
Assistance is available thru the IMS Service Desk (210-567-7777 or ims-servicedesk@uthscsa.edu). Assistance is also available at the IMS Student Support Center (ALTC 106).
Ethics and Professionalism Policy
The CCP Program expects all students to exhibit the highest standards of conduct, honesty, and professionalism. Academic misconduct includes activities that undermine the academic integrity of the institution. The University may discipline a student for academic misconduct as outlined in the UT Health at San Antonio Catalog and Handbook of Operating Procedures. Academic misconduct may involve human, hard-copy, or electronic resources. Policies of academic misconduct apply to all course, department, school, and university-related activities including conferences and off-campus performances. All cases of academic misconduct must be reported to the Dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and the seriousness of the violation may be taken into account in assessing a penalty. Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to, the following:
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Cheating. Any attempt to use or provide unauthorized assistance, materials, information, or access in any form and in any academic exercise or environment is considered cheating and is expressly forbidden.
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Fabrication. A student must not falsify or invent any information or data including, but not limited to, records or reports, data analyses, and citation to the sources of information.
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Plagiarism. Plagiarism is defined as presenting someone else’s work as one’s own. Ideas or materials taken from another source for either written or oral use must be fully acknowledged. The adoption or reproduction of ideas, opinions, theories, formulas, graphics, or research results of another person without acknowledgment is expressly forbidden. Credit must be given to the originality of others whenever:
- Quoting the works of another
- Using another person’s ideas, opinions, or theories
- Paraphrasing the words, ideas, opinions, results, or theories of others
- Borrowing facts, statistics, or illustrative material
- Offering materials assembled or collected by others
Facilitating Academic Dishonesty. A student must not intentionally or knowingly help another student commit an act of academic misconduct, nor allow another student to use his/her work or resources to commit an act of misconduct.